Advice on travelling the world

Hi all, I know there are alot of people in this community who have been away, or are currently away travelling the world. I was hoping that people could maybe give me some advice, where to go, what to see etc.

I'm leaving in august for six months, returning to England in January so i can start work again in February. My very simple itinerary so far is;
England-California (maybe spend a month here)
-the far east(I'm open to suggestions of whereabouts to go, although I definitely want to experience a full moon party in Thailand)
-New Zealand (I'll be spending the bulk of my time here, around 3 months I reckon, probably spending Christmas here too)
-Australia (I may fly here for new year to experience the party at Sydney harbour)
-home to England.

I will add that I'm not the adventure type, I don't want to bungee jump or skydive, I don't want to scuba dive the great barrier reef (mainly as I cant do the whole breathing underwater thing!!) and I don't want to climb a mountain. I just want six months of relaxing, sightseeing, cultural fun!

Thanks in advance for any advice folks!

well Im certainly not going to be any help, those things are really all ive done in those places.

In NZ the lord of the rings tour is really pretty; though highly cliched.(pretend there is a squiggle above the e)

In Thailand, it depends on what your after - the south end is touristy and beachy, the north is more cultural and mountainy. I found I got to spend more time just being in thailand up north in Shangmai, while in the south I was inundated with tourist crap. But that might be what your after.

Australia is a very big place so if your flying into Sydney and only staying for a small amount of time then dont make too many plans outside of the coastal region. North of Sydney people tend to do Byron Bay-Brisbane-townsville.

Hiya Mods

I'm currently in Thailand and i have to agree with WoodlandApple about the touristy thing. I'm in the south and and the beaches are one endless parade of internet shops, travel agencies, schlocky shops and tourist oriented restaurants. It's all money money money, gimme gimme gimme.

Maybe that is what your interested in if so the full moon party might be something you want to attend. But seriously, it's nothing more than 10 000 tourists drunk on the beach, there's nothing cultural about. It's one big cash grab, nothing n\more. You'll find more than enough beach bar action on a regular night on that beach without committing to outrageous bungalow prices ( most places have a five day minimum stay ) and taxi fares when you want to go back "home"

I came here for scuba diving, but I got attacked by a dog three nights ago, so now I'm a medical tourist. I can still spin poi on the beach as long as I take enough painkillers but other than that, the southern scene is pretty boring. It's lay on the beach all day, get hammered at night. Nothing 'cultural" about it. They don't even play Thai music in the bars, last night i was spinning to ACDC.

There's tours worth doing, like the karst formations in the Andaman sea ( James Bond island ) check out Thorntree for recommendations.



Go to Angkor Wat, you'll be seeing that on Discovery channel for the rest of your life and you'll be able to say "I've been there..." Do the trekking thing in northern Thailand. It's not streneous

that sucks dude I hope you bit it back

I suggest not to do the touristy things. I've been to Germany and all the tourist stuff is boring and really expensive and they make it look like fun, but it's not.

If you can get any connections where you're going, stay with them if you can, at least for a while. Living with another family can be fun in its own.

Also, the locals know what the actual fun things are and also know what you would actually want to see. Being a part of their culture is amazing and eye opening and I'd suggest to do that as I've never had more fun, or more a more life changing time in my entire life than actually living with the Germans.

I'm not sure about those places, but in the Alps, of course this was the Germans' idea and not our teacher's, but we went hiking up to a hostel in the mountains. We stayed there a day and if you're with a group (always try to be, it makes it much more fun) just see what they do for fun and you'll probably love it.

I overall would suggest to try getting as much connections as possible in those places, so not only do you not always have to stay in a hotel, but you always have what becomes your family if you stay with them. Also, when you get away from the touristy places, things become much much much less expensive.

If you do make connections, I think the best thing to do would be to ask them what to do when you're their, because I'm just basing it off my experiences, and that's only in Germany and a little into Austria.

I think it depends on whether you want the contiki experience, or the living experience or the backpackers drunk experience.

Hummm, Mods hasn't returnd to thread.Oh well, Knowing the budget always helps in these types of threads, for all I know Mods could be planning a string of five star resorts.



No, i was tempted to..

It's long and complicated but yesterday I gave the dog a stay of execution as it's become widely known I've been looking for him and wanting to take him for a walk in the jungle. Luckily I'm in perfect tropical beach paradise and the only time I run into the touristy schlockfest is when I go into town for a rabies shot.

I can spin though, and I even pulled off a five beat weave last night, something I didn't think possible when I was practicing yesterday. Maybe it's the painkillers

Thailand is OK if you want somewhere 'done' to death already. Try Indonesia. It's large, fascinating and in many places very untouristed. I live in Bali which is small, fascinating and in some places very touristed... but even there, in many places still not.

Can you buy T-Shirts that say:

"My <insert family relative here> went to <insert place here> and all I got was this lousy T-Shirt"?



I like those.

I'm here! I've been lurking! I'm not planning to stay in big luxury places, possibly a motel or two whilst on the road in california, but it's hostels from there on!

I do have a pretty good sum of money saved up (it'll be about £16,000 by the time I leave), but I do not intend to just blow it all, I want to leave most of it so that I have money to put towards a house when I return back to Blighty. I was thinking of working whilst I travel, but I don't think I'll be in one place long enough to make it worth my while getting work. I may get a working holiday visa for New Zealand though, just in case I do find the odd day's work.

What would be even more amusing would be a shirt exactly like that.

16 000 pounds should be more than adequate and that kind of cash won't leave you hamstrung if something happens, like accident or illness. It allows you the ability to choose to be cheap and revel in it rather than having to look for the cheapest digs, the cheapest food.

I second newgabe on Bali. I've never been there, but I've never met anyone whose been disappointed with it. True Thailand is done to death ( especially by Australians and Europeans ) and is in the process of getting more done to death every year.

Curiously enough, I'm meeting lots of English people who are on their way to work in either Australia or new Zealand. Nobody appears to be under any "promised land" illusions and there's degreed people heading over there, willing to take any job they can get. At lest you won't have to count on working, if you find something. great, it'll be a time killer as well as a money earner.

Side note: "I went to Australia and got this T-shirt for my wife. Good swap eh?"

Like I said, I really dont intend to spend a large amount of that £16,000. I'd like to come back and still have around £10,000, although i'm not sure if that'll happen!

Bali sounds interesting though, is there alot to do there? or is it more a relaxed, chilled out place?

Yeah, that is quite good!

I enjoyed Thailand more than Bali, But in Thailand I was up north the majority working. I really liked hanging out at the triangle and doing trips into Laos and Burma. I hired a moped and braved the street. It was cool.

If you do hire a moped or anything DO NOT USE YOUR PASSPORT AS GARANTEE, you will get screwed.

Ja..I have an expired passport with me just for renting motorbikes. There sure are a lot of people wandering around here on crutches though...Hail fellow medical tourists.

So the Haiti thread..black bagged huh ? Damn, looks like SD is doomed to music threads.

Hey yall, i was just wondering if anybody has found a good way to clean the white pvc LED poi balls without messing them up. Cuz, anybody that has these, knows that they end up gettin a lil dirty and faded....my balls r filthy lol. -Beefcake (the girl)

I have same problem, but wrong thread my lady

*UPDATE*

I have pretty much decided to cut out the far east from my travels as six months is really not a long enough time to enjoy as much as I want to. This means I will be spending more time in Australia and New Zealand. Approximately 2 months and 2.5 months respectively.

I'm not too sure if I'll be in one place long enough to do any work, but I'm still thinking of getting working holiday visas for both, just in case I do find short term work.

So, suggestions of places to go see in Australia and New Zealand would be awesome please folks!

I'd recommend that if you want culture, find some locals (hello HoP!) and go do culture.

In Melbourne (for example) check out the live music scene (before the government keeps killing it off!) or the alleyways filled with cafes.

Go and find out what the locals do and do that too. It's a lot cheaper than touristy stuff and personally I think that it's more rewarding.

You do realise you can only get one working holiday visa, right? So if you go, think, 'Wow, this is awesome, I want to come back here for a whole year or two' you can't, or at least not working. If you're definitely not going to be able to go back on one, this might not be much of an issue but personally, I'd skip the work visas- they do cost quite a bit, and in only 2 to 2 1/2 months, you're unlikely to get much back for it. (Aus working holiday visa is currently £128, NZ looks like £50..)

You can generally do work for accommodation at hostels and suchlike without a visa (arguably not legal, but no-one's ever got into trouble for it)- or consider joining Wwoofing if you like the idea of working somewhere interesting, it's not just farms anymore.

Apart from that- yeah, find the local HoPPers! And Couchsurf! If you're not registered on www.couchsurfing.org, become so.
You'll probably meet some total nutters through it, but also some really brilliant people, and great places.

I've registered on couchsurfing, but I've not set up my profile properly yet. It's always been my intention to meet as many HoPers along the way as possible, so if any of you are involved in regular meets, or fancy coming to meet a strange english fellow, then let me know!

great advice for traveling the world... Haiti might be looking for volunteers...

when renting motorbikes it might be a good idea to carry a xerox (color) copy of your passport (if you're short of expired ones), make sure to include a copy of the current visa.

Australia is packed with places worth spending time in. If you're
smart then make this a round the world trip, which lasts for 2 years. Doing a short trip now will only give you short glimpses of each country and not a full(er) picture... in a few years you will be older, less flexible, less adventurous and more comfortable...

Great places to visit are Thailand (mountains or islands), Cambodia (coast and Angkor), Australia (Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Cairns, Perth, the national parks and - sorry - the Reef), Indonesia (Bali), India (all over)... this by far is not "the world", so I'd advise some more of the US and definitely Brazil... the best advice I can give you now is to pack half the stuff and take double the cash... bear in mind that good travelers never arrive and take your time.

Howdy Mods,

Sorry to hear you're no longer SE Asia-ing it - how come you dropped SE Asia isntead of Oz and NZ? Much more expensive and not as "culturally interesting" either There, I said it

Australian Culture? I thought that was an oxymoron

Here's my advice on Oz and NZ travel.

Please, PLEASE, PLEASE make sure you go to West Australia.
It's absolutely beautiful, the full length of it. Not that the rest of Oz isn't also stunning, but we were blown away by WA. West is Best!

Having said that, it depends what you want to do.

If you're into (or would like to get into) walking - there are some jaw-droppingly beautiful places to go see, with walks ranging from 20 minutes to full days (and more).

The East Coast probably has the "best" beaches in terms of fun atmosphere, but again WA had the prettiest ones and often utterly deserted (There's probably a deadly reason for this, but they look nice).
Aside from the people, the Gold Coast was a little dissapointing. But the people were awesome so this didn't matter.

City-wise
Melbourne (and St Kilda's) are defintiely worth a visit. Interesting city, lots of museums, lovely people.
Brisbane is a definite city, which may or may not appeal to you. Lovely people.
Adelaide is very simialar to Kingston-Upon-Thames only hotter - lovely parks, lovely people, Bluetongue beer
Sydney you can't avoid doing the touristy things, but they're really good (especially the aquarium)
Canberra - Take the Aussies advice and don't go there. Really. It's terrible.

My "must do" stuff would be (in no order):
Adelaide -> Melbourne (or vice versa) via the Great Ocean Road.
Cape Leeuwin Naturaliste area of WA
Karra Valley in WA
Hug a wombat
Wilpena Pound "near" Adelaide
Cape Range NP (Near Exmouth)
Sydney Aquarium
Waterfall Way
Go to as many National Parks as possible
Meet as many HoPers as possible


NZ we found it harder to get off the tourist trail, but was equally awesome. We were there in winter which closed off a few options for us - the Tongariro Crossing for example - and made the South Island harder to get around as roads kept being closed. But on the plus side, there weren't any sandflies.

If you want to go walking in NZ, don't go to the Abel Tasman- go to the Kahurangi- the guide books never mention it, but it's just as nice and has only a fifth of the visitors, despite being ten times the size..

Cutting out the far east...excuse me, but are you insane?

You've got 4-6 months and a swack of cash, so why on earth would you want to waste your time working some crappy job in Aus or NZ ? Those two countries are the places you're going to spend all your cash.

SE asia...50 Puunds a day and you're living like royalty.

How about doing something actually interesting like flying into Perth, buying a motorcycle and riding it up the coast until the road ends? Flog it off somewhere, jump a plane to Bali, work your way through Indonesia, through Malaysia, up through Thailand, over to Cambodia, then over to Vietnam.


Soon..your trip will be over and you'll be back in Jolly Old. You want memories, you want war stories to tell around the water cooler, you want scars. Don't play it safe by going to places where there's no language barrier and no general weirdness like this internse CAFE that I'm in that doesn't have any coffee ( hey cafe people...there's a 7/11 five doors down ).

What would you rather remember and relate ? Actually seeing a third world country which would greatly shape your views on things like the Haiti thread, seeing a family of four crammed onto a 125cc scooter, with a puppy in the front basket....or your month spent selling mobile phones in some mall in Melbourne?

Really, you're flying half way around the world..make the MOST of it.

Maybe..kind of a crappy way to spend a vacation though. Anyway I don't have rabies and the punctures are making healing motions so I'm down Here in Koh Lanta diving.

The fire spinning scene down here sucks. I saw a show last night where they cranked on this agressive meral mushc , spun really fast and.....lost half their audience half way through the show. I may take a run up to KPG after the FMP to see what's happening up there if I have a few days after the Similians trip.

As much as it means not coming to Australia, I do agree with Stout - travelling to a country where they speak the same native language as you is just cheating

New Zealand has always been somewhere I've dreamed of going to, so that cannot be taken off the list. I want to see as much of it as possible, so that's why I've given it 2-3 months of my time.
The other three months are what I have to decide on. I'd like to see california, but I suppose I could always holiday there in the future. The thing about the far east is that I want to see too many places, so it's a nightmare deciding where. I need to do some serious research!

Laos = Awesome.

If you do go to Mayaysia, don't stay in the Pudu Hostel in Kuala Lumpur- it's run by evil people who intentionally messed up my booking (so I arrived there late at night from the airport and had to pay for the most expensive room in the place because he'd only told me via email that I *could* reserve a cheaper room, not that he'd actually reserved me one..) and nick stuff from the 'secure storage' (got about £100 from me, and I've heard exactly the same from several other people too)..

Let it go? After several years? Naaah...

Here's an idea if you want to really see the world do what i did on my last trip.
Don't bother with planes and go overland. I got from the UK to Bali this way. It gives you a real sense of how big the world is when you spend an entire week on a train crossing Russia.
Also as Hamamelis said don't wast your oppotunaty for NZ/OZ working holiday visas on a six month trip when you could stay there for three years.
Either way Enjoy.

now now thats a bit cheap, I have a right mind to report you to your self.

dont stress out about the places to see; you cant possibly see everything so dont try to. if you change your mind on E asia I agree with Durbs, Laos is amazing. I dont remember many a night due to sculling snake whiskey.good times, good times.

If you do spend time in Aus, particulaly over summer then be prepared to do a lot of travelling in poorly air conditioned hire vans in 40+ degree heat. Western Aus is great, but will be very hot.

I do a lot of adventure stuff on my trips but I also tend to hang with locals (esp HoPpers in NZ and Aus) because they know the local shiznit.

Seriously, skip California. It'll be there and it's kinda meh anyway, other than the north. Everyone is very happy to take your money.

New Zealand- hit the mountains, go to the small towns outside of the big cities, meet up with the HoPpers there because they are full of awesome and fantastic ideas.

Australia-

I agree with whomever it was that said in Sydney hit the tourist things because they are obvious and worth it. My first day in Sydney we took the Ferry to Darling Harbour, which is a major tourist spot, BUT we hung out on the balcony of a bar, had some drinks and watched/laughed at the tourists being squirted by the sidewalk fountains.
There is also a place called Koala Park where you can pet a koala and hand feed kangaroos but it's not overwhelmingly busy.
It's like a mini-zoo/petting zoo but only for indigenous animals.
I actually enjoyed the subdued nature of it.

Melbs-
St. Kilda is fun. You can check out the Espy, where they film a rock and roll quiz tv show, have an awesome breakfast and then hit the beach or the sea baths across the street. Lots to do.

The Arcades. Behind the posh shopping districts in the city heart are the dark alleys. This is where you will find some incredible graffiti, school girls smoking and changing into punk wear from their uniforms, tonnes of fun shops, cafes and awesome restaurants. Then it opens into poshness before dissolving back into the dark alleys. If you are into people watching and nifty hidden places, this is perfect.

Take a stroll along the river in Melbs. You can watch rowers and maybe even see our own lovely Rouge ;), there are tonnes of art pieces (like the upside down bells that go off), you can see some cool architecture, stop in a pub/cafe. It's quite chill and laid back.

Victoria Market. Monselvat Art Colony. There a few Botanical Gardens/Manors that were lovely.

But as much as I'm into adventure, I also love art, gardens and architecture so...that's how I balanced it. It's really dependent on what you like.

No matter where I was, I enjoyed sitting on a beach and watching surfers or visiting the smaller towns and just breathing that in.

I'm going back to Oz and am planning on road tripping from Melbs along the coastline to Cairns, as well as a drive down the Great Ocean Road.

I'll not comment on Asia since it's been covered.

Did I just get listed as a tourist attraction? Sweeeeeeet.

Visit Asia! You won't regret it! If there's too many places there you want to visit to decide then pick a starting point and go!

One trip I did NYC, Texas, California, NZ, OZ east coast, Bali, Thailand in 6 months. Here's a few tips:

1) If I'd had £16,000 I'd have come home with over £10,000 and I didn't travel badly!
2) California is a nice place to visit, but fairly pricey.
3) NZ is beautiful and few places are as nice in as condensed a format. South America is more stunning, but a lot larger to drive around!
Pack worn-in walking shoes and take up long distance walks.
Hire a car long term and you'll be able to find a good price, especially if you return to the same the city or do Christchurch to Auckland, which is opposite to the route people usually take. This'll mean really easy travel, freedom to go down random roads and the chance to pick up hitch-hikers, a source of randomness to be mined!
Stay in highly rated backpackers in amazing locations, but take ear-plugs!
2 months is a good length of time to explore, 3 gives plenty of time for chilling out & walking.
4) Australia was great, but I enjoyed visiting amazing people more than the country-side as I really loved NZ's more. Other people say the opposite, but they usually travelled to Oz before NZ
5) Visit Asia!!!
Thailand is ok, but there's so much more. Indonesia is great once you bust out of the tourist traps in Bali.
Laos is truly amazing! Lovely people and incredibly beautiful.
Visit Burma if you can do so without paying money to government tourist agencies and hotels (it's possible, but tricky).
There's also Cambodia and Vietnam to sample.
If you want to do Malaysia avoid the peninsula and go to Borneo.
6) Don't bother with a working visa. If you fall in love with NZ or OZ you'll want to go back, and that's your ticket.
7) Go with the flow. A lot of my good times were when I went wherever I was pointed, either by a random article; a post on Thorntree; fellow traveller's advice; a suggestion from somebody in a cool shop. I often had to read up on places as I was heading there or after I'd arrived. I know people who hate that idea, but I relished it, even if occasionally I arrived somewhere and there was nowhere to stay as I hadn't thought to book anywhere!

It'll be great fun!

Right.....I've got some serious planning to do. As much as I'd like to see the Aussie HoPers, I think Aus is going to be cut from the list instead of Asia. At the moment I'm thinking of going to NZ first, just to get used to the whole travelling experience and to see some friends and HoPers. After two months there, the next three and a half-four months I can use to explore as much of Asia as possible.

When hiring a car in NZ, do you need a permanent place of residence to put down on forms? How does insurance work there, is it an extra on top of the hire? What kind of price should I be looking to pay for 2 months worth of hire?

Don't cut Aus.

There's too many HOPpers to meet, and Australia is a fantastic country.

Seriously, go to Australia, you'll regret it if you don't.

That's the ticket!! Good on ya! You won't regret it. One thing to keep in mind, barring Thorntree, the internet makes travel seem much more expensive than it really is. All this pre booking and such comes at a price.

Hiring a car in NZ is straight forward. I looked in the local papers for adverts and walked around a few local rental firms, who were generally cheaper than the big internationals and willing to do good deals on long term rentals, especially if dropping off in Auckland. You'll need to put down an address in the UK and show your license (including annoying paper part!) and passport and off you go!

UCOF, I don't want to cut anywhere, but 6 months is really not a long time and i want to enjoy travelling at a chilled pace. I don't want to feel rushed because i'm trying to see ther whole world in such a small amount of time.

OK, but goto Australia.
Seriously.



You won't regret doing it.

I reckon about a month for all of it, meaning you see as much as possible, without rushing.

*MAJORLY BAD NEWS*

I've just been told that I may not be able to take a career break due to manning issues in my area. Basically, nobody is currently available, or going to be available to take my position when i go away. This means that the company cannot let me go.

I'm absolutely gutted. It's going to take a while to find out for sure, but the outlook is not good!

crap. I live in Australia, I know all the shortcuts and I wouldnt be able to see it all in a month. Considering it takes a couple of weeks to drive across; you wouldnt have time to get out the freegin car.

That sucks about not getting time off......

......you could always quit.....

I wasn't going to suggest seeing it all. :
There's far too much to see in one lifetime.

I'd also fly everywhere if I had that sort of money, unless you *wanted* to drive the Great Ocean Road.

how can you see anything stuck inbetween two fat people on a ricketty plane while sticking your head in an airsick bag trying to think happy thoughts? If airporst are all you want to see the then gold, Do that one.

seriously, are you not reading the airplane thread?

Well that sucks Mods...

Yea, I suppose you could always quit but if you think of all the money you'll make by working for those six months, that's quite a few 3/4 week trips to the destination(s) of your choice.

I refuse to sit next to fat people on planes, they'll only trample over me with their lumbering bulk as the refreshments trolley flies down the aisle during a crash.

I also don't get airsick.

No, I'm not reading that thread, I don't read anything these days. I just post.
I'm quite lucky, if what I post, even relates to the original topic these days.

The squirrels are coming! Maybe you will be safe(r) in Australia.

So nothing has really changed then?

Everything, and nothing, has changed from the days the sparrow beat its wings for the very first time.

Blah blah blah.

but then you have to deal with the possums. These buggers are the ones that taught the squirrels that unity = strength

One small furry rodent at a time.

Hey, leave me out of this

I am currently in Japan for teh final week of my trip, cold here after being in summer for the past 9 months or so, but none the less a great place from what I have seen so far although pretty expensive.

With regards to New Zealand I shared a camper van with a few people I met earlier in the trip and had an awesome time, the only issue you may find with this is that it will be pretty cold over the christmas period that you wish to be there, also although it appears cheap at first to use a camper van things soon start to add up, especially if you want to stay in camp sites and not at the side of the road. The cheapest option would be to use the naked buses and other local bus services, other options would include Kiwi Experience/stray or something similar, all of which have sights that will give you more information.

Similar is to be said about Australia, I decided to use the Oz Ex buses as it took the hassle out of planning the trip and was one hell of a laugh as socially it is awesome. The east coast is the most popular route (Sydney > Cairns or visa versa) and defo a great trip.

America is pretty cool although I'm not sure I would go back, I found it all a bit too familiar to home and most of the sights, although nice to get a photo of, I found myself just going to tick them off the list kinda thing. Although the people are great and San Fran in particular is a great city.

I personally would recommend a little time in Borneo or Malaysia generally, I had a great time there and is just a bit more off the beaten track than a lot of the other destinations in SE Asia.

To be quite honest though I think where ever you decide to go you will have an amazing time, everywhere has things for anyone to enjoy if they look for them so all I'm going to say is as long as you leave with an open mind all will be good

Thanks for all the advice folks! Keep it coming...just in case I do get this time off!

My career break has been granted!!!!! Yaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Dates are still to be confirmed, but its looking like its going to be six months starting from august.

I've decided to spend most of my time in New Zealand, and wing the rest of the trip. Borneo is looking like a favoured destination, as i'd love to go and see the orangutans.

Can anybody help me in figuring out the best ways of getting to places like borneo? I know there is an airport in Jakarta and that I can catch short haul flights from there, but I would love to know if anybody has any experience of doing this?

Congrats Mods! Yay for Holidays!!

I have a few bits of advice for you:

1. NZ is a small place and you really only need spend around a month-6weeks there.

2. definitely go to SE Asia! I would suggest 2-3months.
I haven't made it there myself but I hope to soon and it's stupidly cheap and wonderfully amazing (or so i hear). I highly recommend Vietnam. As i understand it, it's like Thialand but less touristy and even cheaper. Also Laos as Durbs says is amazing.

3. make sure you make it to Aus... it's a really awesome palce and there are so many friendly HOPpers. 1-2 months would be my recommendation (depends on how much time you want to spend elswhere.

If i was doing it i'd probably fly to SE Asia (prolly Bangkok cos it's a major hub) spend 3 months traipsing around asia. fly to NZ and spend a month there doing awesome stuff and then fly to Aus and spend the last leg of your trip there.

What are the dates of travel? keepin mind if you come to Aus in our winter it wont be sunny beaches and the like unless you're way up north. if you just want that kind of weather then do north aus from SE Asia and then go to NZ.

I live in Melbourne and am also on Couchsurfing (User: carefreeaussie) so feel free to let me know when you rock down my way (although i hope to be leaving the country myself in August). The places in Aus that you must visit are:

Wilson's Promontory national park (my favourite place in the world and only 3hrs from Melb)
Bay of Fires - Tasmania
Byron Bay
Melbourne - check out fitzroy and Brunswick... not just St Kilda come on people, there is so much more to Melbourne than just St Kilda!

I have a question, how do you guys afford all of this travel and how much does it cost you really? And how much do you end up spending when you're actually there on food and such? Because many people here don't strike me as wealthy.

You will be amazed what you can do without in order to do with what you love, SoD. Once the travel bug bites you nothing is ever the same.

Aren't there things you would like to see before you die? Would you go see them if it meant ramen noodles and rough accommodations?

Yes I would. i would do a lot. I love travel, it bit me when I went to Germany. It was a real eye opener. But, I can't see how you can afford just travel, along with all of this equipment. Also, for reference, how do you keep up money to eat and live while you are there, otherwise, how do you make money there? Or do you just save up ahead of time? I learned firsthand how much more enjoyable it is to live with someone else outside of your country. It's amazing and much better than staying in a hotel. I've always hated touristy type things, but I learned that I love living the way they do. The native people always know what is the best to do, all of the cool little things, how to have fun there, and just make an amazing experience making new friends. But, I would after college love to eventually do a trip around the world, or more amazing, move to Germany. From there, it's more of a matter of trains through Europe and much cheaper than those overseas plane tickets. Oh my lord. Also, I told this to my parents and apparently this is why a lot of people move to different countries, is that I felt more at home, like I belonged there, in Germany than I did at my actual home.

My original question was of curiosity, much because I would love to do it myself.

Cairns / the Great Barrier Reef! The rainforest etc in the area are nice too, but to me the GBR is the single must do for the area, even if you only snorkel or go out in a glass sided semi-sub.

I typically save up, it sounds lame, but I take my change and throw it into a bucket, it adds up quickly. Many people use study and work as a way to go abroad.

Pick a place you would like to go, start cutting out things you don't need to save up, ask for advice from all the awesome HoPeeps, mayhap one will open their home to you.

SpinnerofDetroit. I'm currently sitting at work (i work in a call centre) and i work full time. on top of that i live at home so my expenses are almost zero. I also have started busking in the city. Am trying to develop and manufacture my own clothing to sell as well as my own line of toys and build my poi website and promote myself as a professional fire twirler to try and gete actually gigs and run paid workshops and, and , and ... collapse!

To be perfectly honest it's exhausting but brilliant at the same time. I don't get much sleep, about 4-6hrs a night. but i have serious plans to be able to travel perpetually and work or at least busk doing my arts while i travel to supporrt myself.

there are tons of ways to be able to travel the world for a pittance. My mate just got back form 8 months in europe and africa, he spent a total of $13,000 including everything. now he hitchicked, camped and couchsurfed basically everywhere in Europe which saves you a ton. I'm hoping to have over $20,000 saved before i leave in august including having paid for tickets and insurance. It's going to be very, very tough. i need to save another $10,000 - $12,000 in the next 3 months... which is why i'm working my ass off and doing all sorts of other stuff.

My advice for cheap long term travel is:

couchsurf,
hitchhike (if you're comfortable doing it)
eat cheaply (vego food is nutritious and cheap everywhere)
volunteer (e.g. Woofing)
get temp jobs (e.g. ESL teacher) - I'm currently waiting on a reply on a job as an ESL teacher in Spain for the 2010/11 school year.

Your first port of call is www.transitionsabroad.com which is an incredible repository for travel information.

Awesome, I'll have to look at that later because I have to sleep now.